1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to training equipment for the game of football. The invention concerns, more particularly, a training device that enables an individual to improve football throwing skills.
2. Description of Background Art
Many modern athletic activities utilize an inflatable ball as the primary piece of equipment. Activities such as soccer, basketball, volleyball, and water polo utilize a ball having a generally spherical shape. The game of football, however, utilizes a ball with a unique oblong shape that mathematicians characterize as a prolate spheroid. Accordingly, a football has an enlarged central portion and two end portions, which are located on opposite sides of the central portion and taper to blunt points.
Footballs may be formed from a variety of materials. The footballs utilized by collegiate and professional football organizations, for example, are formed in a traditional manner to include a leather, or pigskin, shell having four panels that are stitched together to form four seams extending from one end portion to the other end portion. Leather laces also extend along one seam through the central portion, and a bladder is located on the interior of the leather shell for enclosing pressurized air. Many modern footballs, however, are formed from a variety of other materials. For example, a football may be formed from an inflatable rubber bladder having indentations that mimic the seams and protrusions that mimic the laces. In addition, modern footballs may be formed from a soft foam material.
In the game of football, a quarterback is endowed with the task of either handing the football to another team member or passing the football to another team member. When passing the football, the quarterback has a relatively short period of time to visually assess the playing field and determine which team member is best positioned to catch the football. While performing the visual assessment of the playing field, the football must be properly positioned in the quarterback""s hands to prepare for the throw. A quarterback, therefore, has two primary tasks that must be accomplished simultaneously with different senses: the sense of sight being utilized to select a receiver for the football, and the sense of touch being utilized to properly position the football.
Both of the quarterback""s hands are utilized to properly position the football in preparation for a throw. For purposes of this discussion, the hands will be termed a throwing hand and a guide hand. The throwing hand securely grasps the football and releases the football at the proper moment, thereby permitting the football to soar through the air. The guide hand is placed against the football to guide the football, and provide additional security against dropping the football, during initial stages of the throw.
A properly thrown football soars through the air such that one end portion leads and the other end portion trails, with the football generally rotating around a longitudinal axis that extends between the end portions. The position of the throwing hand is critical to ensuring that the football soars through the air in this manner. When properly positioned, the fingers are located on the football in the following manner: First, the thumb is placed near one end of the football and at a location that is separated from the seam that includes the laces by approximately 135 degrees. Second, the index finger crosses and is positioned adjacent to the seam that includes the laces, but at a position that is spaced away from the laces. Third, the middle finger is placed on or near the seam that includes the laces, and adjacent one end of the laces. Fourth, the ring and pinky fingers are placed on the laces, adjacent to the laces, or in a configuration that crosses the laces. In addition to the throwing hand, the position of the guide hand is important. Generally, the palm of the guide hand is located on the central portion of the football and at a location that is separated from the laces by approximately 90 degrees.
The above discussion regarding proper placement of the hands illustrates the complexity associated with proper hand placement. During a football game, the quarterback has a relatively short period of time to properly place the hands upon the football and simultaneously select a receiver. Accordingly, the sense of sight should be dedicated to selecting a receiver, and the sense of touch should be dedicated to positioning the football. Inexperienced quarterbacks, however, may have a tendency to look at the football to assist in proper hand placement. Such actions often detract from the quarterback""s ability to select a receiver, thereby limiting the effectiveness of the eventual selection.
Various training aids have been proposed to assist athletes in properly utilizing balls of various types. U.S. Pat. No. 4,546,975 to Nims discloses golf balls and basketballs that have markings to provide the athlete with a means to discern the direction of spin and number of revolutions of the balls. Although such markings may be beneficial in sports like golf and basketball, wherein the athlete may utilize the sense of sight to properly position the ball, such markings would not be beneficial in the game of football where the sense of sight should be entirely reserved for selecting a receiver. U.S. Pat. No. 5,570,882 to Horkan discloses a football having a first part of a hook and pile fastener attached to select portions of the football surface. In addition, a glove is disclosed that include a second part of the hook and pile fastener. The football and glove may be utilized cooperatively to assist an athlete to impart a proper spin to the football. The glove, however, may inhibit the quarterback from utilizing the sense of touch to discern proper hand placement during the limited period of time that is required in the game of football.
The present invention is a football for training an individual by assisting the individual to tactilely determine locations for proper hand placement, while permitting the visual selection of a receiver. The football includes an outer surface and a plurality of tactile elements located on the outer surface. The tactile elements are tactilely-distinguishable from the outer surface and define locations for placing portions of a throwing hand of the individual upon the football.
Proper hand positioning in preparation for a throw of the football has the capacity to improve the quality of each throw. In general, a spiral throw, wherein the football rotates about a longitudinal axis, is preferred. By positioning the throwing hand properly, the probability of achieving a spiral throw is increased.
The tactile elements may include elements for specifically contacting the thumb, index finger, and middle fingers of the individual. Once these fingers are properly positioned the ring and pinky fingers naturally contact the football proximal the laces. In addition, the tactile elements may include an element for contacting a guide hand of the individual.
The texture of the tactile elements is one characteristic that distinguishes the tactile elements from the outer surface. The tactile elements may also have a color that is different from the remainder of the outer surface to provide a visual indication regarding proper hand placement.
In addition to the tactile elements, the football may include visual elements that provide feedback concerning each throw. The visual elements may be located on end portions of the football such that the individual may see the visual elements following a throw. The visual elements assist the individual in judging rotation, speed, and location of the football. In addition, the visual elements may assist a receiver in catching the football.